• DOI:10.1177/0095327X9101700303
• Corpus ID: 143452220

African American Women in the U.S. Military

@article{Moore1991AfricanAW,
  title={African American Women in the U.S. Military},
  author={Brenda Lee Moore},
  journal={Armed Forces \& Society},
  year={1991},
  volume={17},
  pages={363 - 384}
}

• B. L. Moore
• Published 1 April 1991
• Political Science
• Armed Forces & Society

This article is a comparison of black women with women of different racial and ethnic backgrounds and black men in the U.S. military. Developmental analysis is used to examine historical trends and to hypothesize about the future of black women on active duty. Although there is considerable scholarly literature on minorities (particularly African-American men) and women in the armed forces, no systematic study of the participation of African-American women exists. This omission is significant in view of the fact that the representation of black women has increased more than sixfold over the last 15 years (which marks a greater percentage increase than any other segment of the military population). Results of statistical analysis confirm previous findings that African-American women are accessing the military at a faster pace than other racial and ethnic female groups in the United States; they are more concentrated in the Army than other branches of the military; they are mostly assigned to administrative and support occupations; and they are more likely to be single parents than are military women and men in the comparison groups. The article ponders the consequences of these findings for the future stability of the participation of black women in the U.S. military.